220 



THE IRRIGA TION A GE. 



acres of orchard it will require 30,000 gal- 

 lons of water. This will take a team and 

 one man six days. The soil will be culti- 

 vated thoroughly, and about three times 

 as deep as is usual. 



It is claimed by advocates of the new 

 system that fruit raised with a dry surface 

 will be far superior to that raised with 

 surface watering. The spider and moth 

 will not be attracted by damp soil. The 

 usual water rental is $1 per acre for sur- 

 face watering. It is claimed under the 

 new system that two inches of water will 

 irrigate twenty acres of bearing orchard. 

 It is proposed to grow melons in the same 

 way, the water-box at the melon-root, of 

 course, being smaller. It is claimed that 

 melons in this country are not of the best 

 quality, on account of lying on moist 

 ground and becoming the prey of the dif- 

 ferent kinds of insects. Under the new 

 system, the melon rests on a dry surface, 

 colors naturally, ripens evenly, is not filled 

 with water by evaporation, has an even 

 and regular rind, ships better, and keeps 

 better in the market. Northwest Maga- 

 zine. 



Rural Mail The rural free mail delivery 

 Delivery. has come to stay, and may 

 now be accepted as an essential feature of 

 our vast and wonderfully reliable postal 

 system. There is no reason why the citi- 

 zen of the thickly settled farming com- 

 munity should not have his daily paper or 

 his mail flung into his front yard by one 



f Uncle Sam's mail carriers, instead of 

 having to quit his work to go to town and 

 receive it at the hands of the indifferent 

 boss of the general delivery window. In 

 fact the government has been willing 

 enough all along to get out into the coun- 

 try with free delivery mail service, but it 

 was not believed, until recent experiments 

 had been made, that it could do so with- 

 out loss to the postal branch. 



ugrutitude There are indications of the 

 Cubans. grossest ingratitude on the 



art of the Cubans toward the United 

 States. Our country went to their relief 

 in the hour of their dire extremety, and 

 forced the Spanish heel off their neck. 



hey did little toward their own libera- 



tion. The United States did it all, and 

 has cared for them and helped them ever 

 since, so that they are getting on their 

 feet, and now they show little or no gra- 

 titude toward us. At the opening of their 

 constitutional convention they did mani- 

 fest a little appreciation of our help; but 

 now they seem loth to grant anything- 

 asked. They think they are able to get 

 along without us, and that we ought to be 

 glad that we were allowed to serve them. 

 Possibly they may yet come to their senses 

 without putting us to the necessity of 

 forcing them to act with some spnse, as 

 well as gratitude. 



Benjamin Since the day when it was 



Harrison Dead, announced that Benjamin 

 Harrison was suffering from pneumonia 

 there have been fears that he would not 

 recover. These fears were not without 

 cauce. His rugged constitution, temper- 

 ate, well-ordered life, and the skill of 

 faithful physicians could not save him. 



There have been American public men 

 who have enjoyed popular affection in a 

 greater degree than Benjamin Harrison. 

 Nature did not bestow on him the peculiar 

 qualities which won for Clay and Blaine 

 the devotion of their followers. On the 

 other hand, no prominent American has 

 possessed in a higher degree than the 

 eminent Indianian the great qualities of 

 sincerity and integrity. They gained him 

 the respect of the American people. With 

 these were united mental abilities of a 

 high order. Happy accidents may have 

 contributed much towards making the 

 grandfather President of the United 

 States. Not accident but native ability 

 and hard work lifted the grandson to that 

 position. 



The rebellion made a soldier of him for 

 four years, and he was a good one. Nature 

 designed him for a lawyer, and he was a 

 great one. It was because he was so good 

 a lawyer and held the bsnch in such high 

 esteem that the judicial appointments 

 made by him during his administration, 

 were of such uniform, excellence. He tol- 

 erated no interference when making them. 



As a Senator he was indefatigable and 

 thorough in the discharge of his duties.. 



